Selected Findings From Prospects Study

The achievement gap between Chapter 1 participants and their peers
stayed about the same over the course of the four-year study.

Comparisons between Chapter 1 students and a control group with
similar economic and educational backgrounds showed that participation
in Chapter 1 resulted in "no difference in their achievement
levels.''

Half of the 1st and 3rd graders who received Chapter 1 help
participated in the program for only one or two years.

Students in schools in which three-quarters or more of the students
qualify for free or reduced-priced lunches started the study with lower
achievement scores than their peers in schools where 25 percent or
fewer of the students were eligible for the subsidized meals. The gap
widened in the four years the study tracked students.

"A'' students in high-poverty schools probably would have received a
C in a low-poverty school.

The high-poverty schools that showed improved student achievement
reported less student and teacher mobility, fewer discipline problems,
and more support from parents and the community than comparable schools
where test scores lagged.

Children scored better on achievement tests if their parents
expected them to attend college and receive high grades.